May 30, 2012  All the reviews praise the software for being well designed and easy to use. Macworld magazine calls it “a gem.” TUAW gives it a favorable review.Dave Hamilton of Backbeat Media, a Mac.

• Best Antivirus Mac Software
• Mac Antivirus Software Reviews Macworld

We design Mac hardware and software with advanced technologies that work together to run apps more securely, protect your data, and help keep you safe on the web. And with macOS Catalina available as a free upgrade, it’s easy to get the most secure version of macOS for your Mac.*

Apple T2 chip.
The next generation of security.

The Apple T2 Security Chip — included with many newer Mac models — keeps your Mac safer than ever. The Secure Enclave coprocessor in the Apple T2 chip provides the foundation for Touch ID, secure boot, and encrypted storage capabilities. Touch ID gives you a seamless way to use your fingerprint to unlock your Mac, fill passwords in Safari, and make purchases with Apple Pay. Secure boot helps ensure that you are running trusted operating system software from Apple, while the Apple T2 chip automatically encrypts the data on your Mac. So you can be confident knowing that security has been designed right into the architecture of your Mac, from the ground up.

Apple helps you keep your Mac secure with software updates.

The best way to keep your Mac secure is to run the latest software. When new updates are available, macOS sends you a notification — or you can opt in to have updates installed automatically when your Mac is not in use. macOS checks for new updates every day, so it’s easy to always have the latest and safest version.

Protection starts at the core.

Mac osx sharing apps between users 2017. The technically sophisticated runtime protections in macOS work at the very core of your Mac to keep your system safe from malware. This starts with state-of-the-art antivirus software built in to block and remove malware. Technologies like XD (execute disable), ASLR (address space layout randomization), and SIP (system integrity protection) make it difficult for malware to do harm, and they ensure that processes with root permission cannot change critical system files.

Download apps safely from the Mac App Store. And the internet.

Now apps from both the App Store and the internet can be installed worry-free. App Review makes sure each app in the App Store is reviewed before it’s accepted. Gatekeeper on your Mac ensures that all apps from the internet have already been checked by Apple for known malicious code — before you run them the first time. If there’s ever a problem with an app, Apple can quickly stop new installations and even block the app from launching again.

Stay in control of what data apps can access.

Apps need your permission to access files in your Documents, Downloads, and Desktop folders as well as in iCloud Drive and external volumes. And you’ll be prompted before any app can access the camera or mic, capture keyboard activity, or take a photo or video of your screen.

FileVault 2 encrypts your data.

With FileVault 2, your data is safe and secure — even if your Mac falls into the wrong hands. FileVault 2 encrypts the entire drive on your Mac, protecting your data with XTS-AES 128 encryption. And on Mac systems with an Apple T2 Security Chip, FileVault 2 keys are created and protected by the Secure Enclave for even more security.

Designed to protect your privacy.

The most secure browser for your Mac is the one that comes with your Mac. Built-in privacy features in Safari, like Intelligent Tracking Prevention, help keep your browsing your business. Automatic strong passwords make it easy to create and use unique passwords for all the sites you visit. And iCloud Keychain syncs those passwords securely across all your devices, so you don’t have to remember them. You can also easily find and upgrade any weak passwords you’ve previously used (and reused and reused and reused).

Automatic protections from harmful sites.

Safari also helps safeguard you against fraudulent websites and those that harbor malware — before you visit them. If a website seems suspicious, Safari prevents it from loading and notifies you. And when connecting to unencrypted sites, Safari will warn you. So everything you need to browse without worry is right at your fingertips.

Find your missing Mac with Find My.

The Find My app combines Find My iPhone and Find My Friends into a single, easy-to-use app on Mac, iPad, and iPhone. Find My can help you locate a missing Mac — even if it’s offline or sleeping — by sending out Bluetooth signals that can be detected by nearby Apple devices. These devices then relay the detected location of your Mac to iCloud so you can locate it in the Find My app. It’s all anonymous and encrypted end-to-end so no one — including Apple — knows the identity of any reporting device or the location of your Mac. And it all happens silently using tiny bits of data that piggyback on existing network traffic. So there’s no need to worry about your battery life, your data usage, or your privacy being compromised.

Keep your Mac safe.
Even if it’s in the wrong hands.

All Mac models with the Apple T2 Security Chip support Activation Lock — just like your iPhone or iPad. So if your Mac is ever misplaced or lost, the only person who can erase and reactivate it is you.

With the proliferation of virus threats even the once unassailable Mac environment can be vulnerable to virus attacks, and as such it is vital to have some protection installed on your mac when going online. With a wide variety of software out there, finding the right one can be a little confusing, here are some of what we think are the best Mac Antivirus Software available.

Part 1. The 5 Best Antivirus Programs for Mac

#1. Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac

Offering a suite of protection for your mac when connected to the internet, Kaspersky brings a wealth of features to a small footprint package that uses few resources. With real time protection for your entire computer, web protection to protect from email and text attachments, parental controls to allow the blocking of certain sites as well as controlling social network use if required. This comprehensive package is kept automatically up to date and offers complete protection for your Mac.

#2. F-Secure Anti-Virus for Mac

F-Secure includes full time malware protection for your Mac, protecting against viruses and spyware, email attachments and downloads and so on, providing complete peace of mind whilst online. It is incredibly easy to use with a simple interface and does not slow down your computer at all when in operation. Using virus signatures and real time scanning in combination, no matter what you are doing with your mac you can be sure that you will have adequate protection from malicious attacks.

#3. Intego Mac Internet Security Suite

Another comprehensive package, that includes automatic and comprehensive malware protection, as well as location aware network protection and automatic scans to ensure that your computer, is never vulnerable. Rather than a port from other platforms, Intego have created an antivirus package specifically for the mac from the ground up, providing a wonderfully familiar interface that fits the platform perfectly, and includes a feature that scans your iOS devices every time they are connected to your Mac to ensure your system remains free of infection. It does use more of your systems resources than others here however, which should be taken note of.

#4. Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac

Another package designed from the ground up for Mac, Bitdefender is notable for the low resource overhead it brings. This is especially useful for those with older equipment when computer resources are at a premium, this is the software package that offers the lowest footprint of all those included here. Integrating easily into OS X has a beautiful and easy to use interface, whilst setup is fast and walks beginners through the very simple process. With the usual full time background scanning and automatic updates to ensure the latest threats are always recognized, this comprehensive package is a good option for Mac users.

#5. McAfee Internet Security for Mac

This is a full feature package that includes the usual antivirus, phishing and scanning features to keep your system safe, but also includes a software firewall to control traffic both in and out of your system. You can define trusted networks, establish rules for how your software connects to the internet and even block certain types of data from entering the system completely.

Fully integrated into the operating system, this package can protect not just from email attachments but also iChat, external drives and even iOS devices that you connect to the PC. The online protection available is equal to the others here, but the Firewall is a little lacking compared to dedicated solutions, and this package tends to use the most system resources of those looked at here.

Part 2. Comparison of the above Mac OSX Antivirus Software

Best Antivirus Mac Software

Verdict:

Mac Antivirus Software Reviews Macworld

There are pros and cons for each solution, but Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac offers the best balance between features and resource use, whilst remaining at the top of the threat detection performances as well.